"Honolulu is my birthplace," Obama told Hawaii-based television station KITV in an interview this week. "It's the place where I grew up and I've got so many friends and fond memories and it helped to shaped me.

"I'd like to find a way after my presidency that connection remains," Obama added, "but I live in Chicago now and that's where I grew up professionally"

The University of Hawaii is aggressively pursuing the library, as are potential patrons in Chicago.

"It is a tough choice," Obama said, "but it's not one that I've made yet."

He added: "Folks back home, back in Hawaii, have been very generous in talking about how much they'd like to figure out a way to participate post-presidency and I'm flattered by that and I'm going to look at every option."